Evaluate, Motivate, and Move On: A Better Way to Manage Performance

By: Wendy Luke

John Spence's "Four Pages" technique is a simple and effective way to ensure accountability on the part of both employee and manager in seeking performance improvement. Try it out, and you'll soon find yourself handling your stars, steadies, and questionables with greater confidence.

One of the toughest people problems managers face is the employee who is underperforming. Often, the manager thinks the employee knows what's expected and that the employee has been getting feedback, yet there is little or no documentation of the performance issues.